Behind the NFT-ification of top-tier art, who is working behind the scenes?
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Behind the NFT-ification of top-tier art, who is working behind the scenes?
LiveArt has won community recognition and support for its outstanding performance during the hacking incident, and the community's response to the public sale has been very positive so far.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insights
This article is reprinted with permission from P22 community.
Authors:
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Baiye
Twitter: @baiye38571180
P22 community
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Ethanyi
This article was originally written on October 15. That morning, I woke up to a wave of regrets about missing out on Street Machine. Despite the bear market lasting for months and higher-than-expected U.S. interest rate hikes just days prior, outstanding projects like this still showed vigorous growth. Its exquisite art style and impressive profitability sparked discussions among many NFT players. Some friends even told me "the NFT bull is back," prompting me to write this piece.
However, on the morning of October 17, another wave of distress flooded in regarding the theft from Huang Yuxing’s project. Friends came to me lamenting their losses. After Meta-Morphic's operational wallet lost 197 NFTs to hackers, the project’s price plummeted from a stable ~1.2 ETH to as low as 0.2 ETH. However, reviewing on-chain data revealed that most of this decline was due to wash trading by hackers. During this drop, actual holders sold only about 10–20 NFTs. By October 18, the floor price had rebounded to 1.34 ETH, breaking through the previous resistance level of 1.2 ETH set on the 15th, reaching an intraday high of 2.99 ETH. Indeed, the NFT market is unpredictable and fascinating—yet every shift has its reasons. Updates on post-theft reports and solutions have been added to the operational analysis below.
(Screenshot taken on October 18, 2022)
Three weeks ago, there were still many discussions about Mr. Huang in Chinese NFT circles. But after his project launched, things quieted down again. Even memes and FUD around “Huang,” “Huang Yuxing,” or “Little Huang” resurfaced overnight across various groups following the treasury hack. Yet within just one day, the team rolled out a solution, stabilizing the floor price above 1.3 ETH—demonstrating Meta-Morphic’s solid capabilities in crisis management and overall operations.
As a project by an internationally renowned artist, Meta-Morphic initially carried expectations comparable to those of other top-tier artist projects. Huang Yuxing’s works are highly sought after at auction houses and in luxury collaborations. So why was it mocked by NFT players post-presale, and why did it enter an awkward phase for a time?
Perhaps not everyone knows this project dared to set a mint price of 1.2 ETH for 2,197 NFTs. Let’s briefly introduce it. Meta-Morphic is a collaborative project between Huang Yuxing and LiveArt. Huang Yuxing is one of the best-selling artists in today’s market and among Asia’s most active artists, with artworks priced in the million-dollar range. He collaborates extensively with leading international galleries, museums, and brands, and has consistently achieved strong results at auctions. LiveArt is an art marketplace platform whose founders come from traditional auction powerhouses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s. This makes Meta-Morphic the first major joint launch between both parties.
Beyond analyzing the project’s strengths and weaknesses, this article aims to梳理 information based on news and data suggesting potential future investment value.
Reading Guide
1. Who Supports Huang Yuxing’s Project?
[1] Background and Resources of the LiveArt Platform
[2] Overview of LiveArt Project Collaborations
2. Horizontal Comparison of Art Curation Platforms (ArtBlocks, Outland)
[1] Overview of Art Curation Platforms
[2] Cross-platform Comparison and Connections
3. Operational Analysis of Huang Yuxing’s Project
[1] On-chain Data Analysis
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Project Data
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Transaction Data
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Holder Data
[2] Project Outlook
[3] Post-Theft Treasury Solution
4. Conclusion
1. Who Supports Huang Yuxing’s Project?
LiveArt is an art project marketplace that provides artists with issuance and resource-connecting services. It is also an AI-driven data platform analyzing art market data, real-time auction flows, real-time and historical pricing, and detailed insights into artists and market trends. LiveArt boasts over 400,000 art enthusiasts, followers, and buyers.
The backgrounds of LiveArt’s three founders are exceptionally impressive.
Adam Chinn is a co-founder of LiveArt. He previously served as Chief Operating Officer at Sotheby’s and was a partner at Art Agency Partners (acquired by Sotheby’s). Chinn also has experience in private equity and investment banking, having been a founding partner at Centerview Partners and a partner at Wachtell Lipton. He holds degrees from New York University and Oxford University.
John Auerbach is a co-founder of LiveArt. He formerly held the position of Executive Vice President for Art & Objects and Digital Business at Sotheby’s, and served as International Director for Digital Commerce at Christie’s. Auerbach also has fashion industry experience as the founder and chairman of Eloquii, later acquired by Walmart. He holds an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Boris Pevzner is the founder of LiveArt, with extensive tech industry experience. He founded Collectrium (acquired by Christie’s) and Xfire (acquired by Viacom). Pevzner also worked as an engineer at AT&T Bell Labs. He holds degrees from MIT and Columbia University.
The founders’ stellar backgrounds and connections attracted significant investment.
LiveArt raised over $4.6 million in funding led by Animoca Brands, Binance, and KuCoin, with participation from Alameda Ventures, OKX Blockdream Ventures, GateLabs, HashKey, APENFT Foundation, SNZ, Shima Capital, ArkStream Capital, Head&Shoulder Financials, AppWorks, and several ultra-high-net-worth individuals.
LiveArt Artists
The collaboration with Huang Yuxing marks LiveArt’s inaugural NFT project, making him the platform’s first major partnered artist. Given LiveArt’s resources, additional collaborations with other renowned artists are likely—stay tuned for details.
Past data shows that LiveArt collaborated with generative artist Reva on a limited-edition Passcard, which sold out in just eight minutes on OKX. Reva is an active generative artist in the crypto space, collaborating with multiple projects.
Artist Reva Twitter Profile
Additionally, during the LiveArt Global 100 campaign (featuring 100 global artists), over 130 submissions were received. The Golden Pass used for voting achieved a trading volume of 428 BNB.
More information is available on the official website:
https://liveart.io/NFT
2. Horizontal Comparison of LiveArt with Other Art Curation Platforms
The rise of art curation platforms stems from investors facing challenges in navigating the uneven art market, where art evaluation requires significant expertise and long-term knowledge. Founders and teams behind Web3 art curation/incubation platforms typically come from auction houses, artist studios, or museums, leveraging their deep industry experience and informational advantages to help investors identify quality works.
Besides the established ArtBlocks, the Web3 art curation space welcomed two heavyweight entrants in 2022: Outland and LiveArt. After several months of operation, these premier platforms have each grown robustly in their respective niches.
From the table above, we see that the three art curation platforms are comparable in resources and background but differ in strategic focus. However, LiveArt’s genesis NFT appears slightly weaker compared to the other two. To sustain its presence in the art NFT space and attract collectors, LiveArt cannot afford to let the trajectory of its genesis NFT falter.
3. Operational Analysis of Huang Yuxing’s Project
On-chain Data Analysis (data extracted as of October 15, 2022)
Project Data
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Current floor price: 1.18 ETH; mint price: 1.2 ETH—fluctuating around the mint price (Note: At publication, floor price reached 1.65 ETH);
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Intense sell pressure occurred on launch day, likely due to studio wallets dumping whitelisted mints for profit. Mid-phase trading activity was low. From the 11th to 13th, sustained FOMO pushed the floor price up. In the last 24 hours, FOMO subsided. Throughout this process, studios and arbitrageurs gradually exited. Positive news could reignite buying sentiment among target NFT players.
1. Last 24-Hour Trend
2. Mint Performance
3. Market Cap Overview
Transaction Data
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From listing distribution: Only six listings below mint price; main resistance wall between 1.45–1.55 ETH with 26 listings. Breaking past this level would face little resistance toward 2 ETH;
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In terms of liquidity: Turnover rate since launch has reached 49.05%, indicating sufficient circulation and laying groundwork for future price increases. Though turnover was sluggish in the last 24 hours, trading volume surged starting October 12, likely driven by positive announcements from the team.
1. Listing Distribution
2. Liquidity and Turnover Rate
Holder Data
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In terms of holdings: The number of ordinary holders is decreasing, while holding addresses are becoming more concentrated. Blue-chip and whale holders maintain relatively stable positions, making manipulation easier;
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Regarding holding duration: 68% of holders have owned their NFTs for 7–30 days—a relatively healthy proportion of "diamond hands" (though influence from the top three project-related addresses must be considered);
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Looking at cost basis: The red-boxed addresses in the "Top 10 Cost Basis" list are suspected project wallets (ranks 1, 2, and 3). The first address with 197 NFTs holds 100 treasury NFTs and 97 operational NFTs retained by the team. The second with 178 NFTs is a staking address (~20% staking rate), granting eligibility for Meta-Morphic Season 2 airdrops. The third holds 43 NFTs at zero cost—unclear whether it belongs to the team or influencers receiving promotional airdrops;
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In the "Top 10 Cost Basis," the fourth holder owns 20 zero-cost NFTs—again, unclear if this is a team or influencer airdrop address;
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Starting from fifth place, we see major holders. The sixth is a super whale holding 3 Bored Apes, 96 Mfers, and an 8-month bird. Additionally, the 18th-largest holder is another whale with 4 Meta-Morphics—second only to Azuki in quantity held;
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In terms of distribution: The project team holds a large number of NFTs, suggesting potential manipulation. There are also several addresses holding only this project—possibly Web2 collectors of Huang Yuxing being migrated into Web3.
Note: Whales are addresses holding NFTs valued over $1M.
1. Holder Overview
2. Blue-Chip / Whale Holding Ratio
3. Top 10 Cost Basis
The 18th largest holder is a whale address.
Project Outlook
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LiveArt has backing from multiple exchanges, creating anticipation for an art-related token;
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Support from Adrian Cheng (eldest son of Henry Cheng, chairman of New World Development; grandson of Chow Tai Fook founder Cheng Yu-tung; and third-generation heir of Hong Kong’s Cheng family, overseeing real estate and jewelry businesses). His personal interest in digital assets has led to numerous crypto investments over the past decade, making him a bellwether figure in the industry. Investments include Matrixport, Animoca Brands, and RTFKT Studios (acquired by Nike). He personally holds 101 Azukis. He gained wider recognition in December last year when he purchased the largest virtual land parcel on The Sandbox metaverse platform for $5 million, sparking widespread discussion. His jewelry business aligns well thematically with Meta-Morphic;
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Endorsements from other celebrities may lead to real-world brand collaborations;
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Over 10 major influencers (e.g., Tokoa) and more than 60 communities (Phantom Network, Memeland, Doodles CN, SnapFingers DAO, BNB Chain, OKX EXCHANGE, NFTAerfa, etc.) support Huang Yuxing’s project, giving it substantial influence and resources across key influencer and community networks. Hosting offline gatherings would generate significant impact—an expected component of this project;
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Following the treasury hack on October 17, a strong response from the team could turn the situation around and elevate the project to new heights.
Solution to the Treasury Hack
At 7:00 PM on October 17, I checked LiveArt’s Discord to assess the solution rollout and holder sentiment. Before the official solution was posted at 2:19 PM, holders were experiencing FUD. However, sentiment stabilized afterward.
Prior to the announcement, key alpha figures expressed support for the Meta-Morphic team. Interestingly, unlike typical scenarios where holders panic-sell before a solution is released, such behavior did not occur here—indicating strong community confidence in the project. Below is the team’s proposed plan:
1. Freeze stolen NFTs to prevent trading;
2. Community vote between two options: update smart contract and conduct airdrop; or retain original contract and repurchase NFTs from the market to rebuild the treasury;
3. After destroying the 197 stolen NFTs, LiveArt will compensate users who bought them with full purchase amount plus gas fees;
4. Burning the NFTs will be the final adopted solution;
5. Repurchase 97 NFTs from the market within 48 hours to rebuild the operational wallet, then lock them permanently to keep them off-market;
6. Holders participating in staking will receive 2 airdropped NFTs in Meta-Morphic Season 2.
BlockBeats reported on this incident on October 18:
According to official updates, LiveArt has transferred Meta-Morphic sales proceeds into a multisig wallet, receiving positive feedback from the community. Following the resolution, the total supply of Meta-Morphic series sharply decreased, resulting in a 570% surge within 24 hours and a rapid recovery of floor price to above 1.34 ETH.
Earlier reporting by BlockBeats: At 12:24 AM on October 17, the wallet used for Meta-Morphic’s market operations on the LiveArt platform was hacked, resulting in the theft of 197 NFTs. LiveArt immediately alerted users to halt transactions. At 2:19 PM, the team disclosed details and accepted full responsibility. All stolen NFTs (IDs 1, 4–199) were frozen, preventing further misuse. By 9:50 PM, the team announced a contract upgrade, destruction of the 197 stolen NFTs, a 48-hour compensation plan for affected users, and plans to repurchase NFTs to rebuild the operational treasury.
Meta-Morphic holders generally expressed satisfaction with the solution, as shown below:
4. Conclusion
Meta-Morphic still has 1,200 NFTs left for public sale at 1.5 ETH—a relatively high price point in today’s market. However, based on the information and data analyzed, there remains upside potential and short-term arbitrage opportunities. Long-term prospects remain uncertain and depend heavily on LiveArt’s overall strategy, especially since this is their flagship and inaugural NFT. Poor performance could negatively impact future projects.
Also, the data used here predates the treasury hack because, excluding unforeseen incidents, data up to around October 15 best reflects the project’s inherent strength and holder expectations.
Finally, the project now faces two divergent paths—the outcome will soon reveal its direction:
1. If holders are dissatisfied with the solution and lose confidence, the project’s future will be difficult;
2. If holders are satisfied and public sale proceeds as planned, Meta-Morphic could reach an upward inflection point. Assuming the 1.5 ETH public sale price holds, the team is expected to push the floor price above 1.5 ETH—or risk failing to complete the sale.
Currently, market signals indicate Meta-Morphic has fully recovered from the hack. Floor price climbed steadily after LiveArt announced its resolution, peaking at 2.99 ETH and currently stabilizing around 1.6 ETH. It has consistently ranked near the top of OpenSea’s Trending charts. The team officially announced the public sale date on the 20th, along with a series of positive developments.
Meta-morphic will open public sale on October 24. Magic Eden, Solana’s leading NFT marketplace, has announced a joint launch. Having raised $130 million in Series B funding in June and announcing Ethereum NFT integration in August, Magic Eden is expected to allocate significant resources to ETH-based projects. To date, Meta-morphic has surpassed 1,000+ ETH in trading volume on Ethereum, marking it as Magic Eden’s first major NFT initiative on Ethereum.
Note: LiveArt offers 10 public sale allowlist spots to BlockManiaDAO readers. Readers can participate via the Premint link below:
https://www.premint.xyz/meta-morphic-liveart-x-BlockManiaDAO/
Many blue-chip communities have publicly supported Meta-morphic’s public sale. APE TANK, a BAYC-aligned blue-chip community, has officially joined as an advisor and pledged support for the sale. Meta-morphic enjoys high blue-chip community penetration and strong discourse presence within the NFT ecosystem.
For users staking their NFTs, beyond previously mentioned doubled rewards, LiveArt revealed during an AMA plans for artist Huang Yuxing’s prints—something the community and all NFT collectors eagerly anticipate. This incentive encourages more holders to stake and gain access to potential benefits within the LiveArt ecosystem.
LiveArt earned community trust and support through its effective handling of the hack, and public sale sentiment remains highly positive. With strong art resources, cross-chain partnerships, and backing from top-10 exchanges, there is good reason to remain optimistic about Huang Yuxing’s Meta-morphic, upcoming artist projects, and the eventual launch of ART tokens.
Written on October 15, 2022; edited on October 21, 2022.
Appendix
Social Links
Website:
https://liveart.io
Meta-morphic:
https://metamorphic.liveart.io/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/LiveArtX
Discord:
https://discord.com/invite/liveartnft
Medium:
https://medium.com/@LiveArtNFT
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